Temple Owls Football: Everything you need to know for opening day

As we inch closer and closer to the start of the college football season, here’s everything you need to know about the Temple Owls bout against Villanova.

Don’t look now Philly fans, but Temple Owls football is back!

It’s hard to imagine it’s been almost 10 months since Geoff Collins lead his Owls out onto the Gasparilla Bowl field and lead his team to only the third Bowl Game victory in university history.

And now, like clockwork, that march to December will begin again with a 12 pm EST hometown bout against inner-city opponents the Villanova Wildcats.

But unlike in basketball, this is a game that the Owls should be able to win handily.

Unlike Nova’s modern-day dynasty basketball program, the school’s football program currently plays in the Division I FCS  Colonial Athletic Association, a far cry from the team’s that once featured NFL greats like Howie Long and Brian Westbrook.

Now granted, that doesn’t mean the game will be a simple pushover, as Mark Ferrante‘s squad did win five games last fall after taking over for 30-year tenured head coach Andy Talley, but even a team like Temple, who plays in the AAC, should have considerably more talent on the field than an FCS team.

With the team’s Week 1 captains now set, the Linc will be loaded with fans decked out in either Cherry and White or Navy and White, eagerly waiting to cheer on the likes of RyQuell Armstead, Frank Nutile or even Zach Bednarczyk in the first of what could be very important seasons for both programs.

For Villanova, this could a chance for the team steal a W against a hometown rival in route to what could be their first winning season post-Talley in over 30 years.

And for Temple, this game could not be more important.

Even after losing six players to the NFL this summer, Collins’ squad should still take a step forward in his third season with the program, especially if Nutile can pick up from where he left off last December for his senior season. While many currently have Houston as the team to beat in the American Athletic Conference (featuring potential first overall pick Ed Oliver), don’t be surprised to see the Tuff guys from Philly not only finishing out the 2018 CFB season with a winning record but ranked in the AP Top25 Poll.